Chapter 182
Chapter 182
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 182
Chapter Title: Ten-Year Plan (2)
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Why had the higher-ups ordered the assassination of Great Master Jigong?
Why saddle them with this absurd, impossible hit that no one could pull off?
There was no answer to be found here.
If he wanted to know what twisted logic lay behind such an order, he'd have to track down the one who issued it and ask them straight.
The one who issued the order...
'Bukmyeong!'
It had to be Bukmyeong. Only he could provide answers.
So what now? Head back to the Heavenly Annihilation Division and seek him out?
Impossible. They wouldn't let him in, and Bukmyeong sure as hell wouldn't grant an audience.
If Four Thousand Four tried sneaking into the Heavenly Annihilation Division again, they wouldn't roll out the welcome mat like last time. No, this round they'd purge the intruders without mercy.
One wrong thought could doom countless lives.
Four Thousand Four didn't need to care about their lives. Truth be told, he didn't even know most of them—no faces, no names, not even their genders.
But if he did care, he'd have to answer for every last one.
It was his choice alone, unforced by anyone.
In the end, he couldn't defy the higher-ups.
Breathe when they said breathe, die when they said die. Go when ordered, stop on command.
In this mess, confronting the higher-ups to demand "Why this order?" was out of the question.
Still, he needed to know the reason for the hit.
An assassin could carry out a kill blindly, but... assassinating Great Master Jigong? That was no small affair. It would rock the martial world to its core.
Whether it could be done was secondary. He had to understand why. This could upend the rivers of the martial world. At least knowing the motive would let him move with purpose.
"Beggars' Sect?"
"They're on us."
Fox answered Four Thousand Four's question without hesitation.
"What! Where? I don't see 'em."
Hanbi sounded a bit shocked, but he didn't whip his head around like some rookie. Eyes only, scanning while keeping his head still.
Nothing around. At least, not to his eyes.
"That kid over there."
Fox replied the same way, mouth only, head fixed.
"Kid? Oh! That little brat... the kid's Beggars' Sect?"
"Do all Beggars' Sect disciples have to be ragged adults?"
"Well, no, but..."
"That little one's the real deal."
Fox stated it flatly.
"We're about to hit the outskirts. How'll they tail us?"
Four Thousand Four asked curiously.
"Predicted paths."
"Predicted paths?"
"They guess where we're headed and post spotters ahead. Mountains, skies, wherever we might go—they'll be waiting. Just sitting, watching."
"Sounds risky. Easy to lose us."
"That's for amateurs. Know the terrain inside out, and it's a different story."
"I see. Predicted paths."
Four Thousand Four murmured.
"Don't even think escape. I can't shake 'em in this spot. Underestimate the Beggars' Sect at your peril—they didn't blunder into this blind."
"Relax."
Four Thousand Four's hand rose instinctively to pat Fox's shoulder. But he froze mid-motion, something clicking in his mind. He yanked it back quick, shrugging like his shoulder just itched.
Fox's eyes flashed for a split second—gone too fast for anyone to notice.
"Covering one eye's no big deal, but still off-limits?"
Hanbi muttered.
"That kid's just eyes. Sitting there, watching. We'll run into eyes like that everywhere from here on. No matter our move, tails guaranteed."
"So, what's the play?"
Hanbi turned to Four Thousand Four.
"Play? Heh. We don't need one. Water just flows. The shift's already in motion."
Four Thousand Four cracked a faint smile.
"These bastards are straight-up ballsy. This kosher?"
Zhuge Myeong grumbled, scowling.
Killing intent flickered everywhere. Every peak, every nook bristled with it.
Heavenly Annihilation Division assassins, no doubt.
Their terror was in the ambush. Face-to-face? He'd brawl gladly. But day and night, they lurked, striking the instant an opening appeared—no mercy, no quarter.
Seven clashes already!
Zhuge Myeong had dropped fourteen in those fights.
They never went all-in recklessly. Miss the ambush? They bolted without a glance back. Plenty more chances, their vibe said.
"These pricks got bolder since Mercy Little Killer peeled off?"
"That was always his role."
"What? Blocking these clowns?"
"No. Giving me freedom to act. With Mercy Little Killer here, they wouldn't dare."
Why need Mercy Little Killer?
Zhuge Xiaoxiao felt the void he'd left like a knife twist.
Assassins started pouncing the moment he split. A grinding war of attrition.
Ambushers held the edge here.
Defenders couldn't relax a heartbeat—fatigue gnawed body and soul.
"You knew this'd happen and still cut him loose?"
"Our paths never aligned anyway."
"Even so..."
"Rest first tonight, brother. I'll take watch."
"Quit being stubborn. Signal the clan."
"We need stealth."
"Stealth? Feels like we blew past that a while back."
Zhuge Myeong slumped against a massive tree.
Zhuge Xiaoxiao scanned around it. There—the mark she sought.
'Trace River...'
Four Thousand Four's direction.
He moved in plain sight. Tracking him was child's play with minimal effort.
Four Thousand Four had shaken the Beggars' Sect and reached Trace River.
Extend his path straight... Mount Song.
Shaolin Temple bound.
And one more thing... Four Thousand Four was calling her.
The Jade Invitation Stone gleamed like torchlit jade—unnatural, artificially intensified. He craved its owner's presence.
Of course, Four Thousand Four might feel nothing.
He knew zilch about the stone, had no clue why it glowed. He couldn't be summoning its owner knowingly.
Yet the owner could read the holder's unspoken desires through it.
Four Thousand Four was calling her.
Naturally... Zhuge Xiaoxiao knew why he wanted her.
Kill Great Master Jigong? Why kill him?
Four Thousand Four's Shaolin run had one goal: take down the master.
Others might be blind, but she could guess.
Merchant Traveler, Zhuge Clan Head... next link... Great Master Jigong.
These three shared a thread—potent enough to shatter the martial world's map in a heartbeat.
Zhuge Clan Head, her father, had vanished.
Left the clan, gone missing.
Hid so deep no search would find him.
That part nagged too.
Zhuge Xiaoxiao still didn't know why he'd vanished.
Or... she had a hunch now. A solid one, despite the "hunch."
Dodging assassination, fled to a hideout.
She could guess the spot. Few places evaded Heavenly Annihilation eyes. Clan access? One prime option.
Father was there.
It all sharpened when Four Thousand Four turned toward Mount Song.
Now Zhuge Xiaoxiao grasped the Central Plains' unfolding drama.
Who sparked this?
Not Bukmyeong. Sharp strategist, but no grandmaster for this canvas. To force a Zhuge Clan Head into hiding? Needed someone who could crush the Heavenly Annihilation Division like dough.
'Trace River's an hour off... half at speed...'
Shing!
Zhuge Xiaoxiao scuffed out the tree mark with her foot and drew her sword.
"What?"
Zhuge Myeong squinted up.
"Ambush incoming."
"Yup. They'd be trash otherwise. Ngh! Move again?"
"You rest, brother. This one's mine..."
Shwee!
Arrow mid-sentence. Black shadow popped from the six directions.
Clang!
Zhuge Xiaoxiao whipped her blade like lightning.
Zhuge Clan didn't teach daughters house arts—fear of leaks post-marriage.
But Zhuge Xiaoxiao mastered them all.
No teacher needed; she saw them daily.
Eventually, Clan Head started proper transmission. Around when he planned hiding, likely.
Over a decade back.
Clang! Clang!
Assassin blades tangled with hers. But,
"Urk!"
The one she'd clashed with shuddered violently and crumpled—like poison-racked.
"Hidden weapons!"
One assassin bellowed.
"Lies! Zhuge Clan fights clean!"
Zhuge Myeong roared, swinging.
Riiip!
His sword wind shredded air.
Assassins retreated fast—like always.
They'd only aimed to disrupt rest.
No way they expected a casualty mid-strike. They hadn't gone full throttle, always one foot back.
"What the?"
Assassins gone, Zhuge Myeong eyed the fallen one.
Zhuge Xiaoxiao had unleashed Pipa Hand Sword Art, clan secret.
"Hands playing lute"—supple, swift. Lacked raw kill power, used for warm-ups, not battle.
Yet it dropped an assassin.
"Who goes there!"
Zhuge Xiaoxiao ignored her brother, shouting into the darkening woods.
Swish!
One stepped from the trees.
"Whoa! You—you!"
Zhuge Myeong yelped, stunned.
Another emerged. Then more... four total.
Zhuge Xiaoxiao lowered her limp sword.
"That trick just now—the famed Shadowless Steps?"
"Indeed. Shadowless Steps."
The first from the woods—Four Thousand Four—said flatly, face blank.